Olivier Awards 2025: ‘Giant,’ ‘Benjamin Button,’ and ‘Fiddler on the Roof’ Lead the Night

The 2025 Olivier Awards celebrated the pinnacle of London theatre at the Royal Albert Hall. Three major accolades go to “Giant,” “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button,” and “Fiddler on the Roof.”

‘Giant’ Triumphs with Best Actor and Best New Play

One particularly noteworthy episode was “Giant,” an intriguing mystery exploring Roald Dahl‘s contentious legacy. John Lithgow’s performance of Dahl brought him the Best Actor prize; Elliot Levey, as publisher Tom Maschler, won Best Supporting Actor. The drama itself received honours as Best New Play. Emphasising the ongoing “special relationship” between the US and the UK, Lithgow thanked the kind welcome from the UK theatre scene in his acceptance speech.

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‘Benjamin Button’ Recognized as Best New Musical

The musical rendition of “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button” delighted audiences and brought honours for Best New Musical. John Dagleish won the award for Best Actor in a Musical for his role as the title character. Darren Clark and Mark Aspinall were also given Olivier Awards for Outstanding Musical Contribution, which recognised their outstanding orchestrations and arrangements.

‘Fiddler on the Roof’ Celebrated for Revival Excellence

At Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre, the “Fiddler on the Roof” production won three awards, one for Best Musical production. Tom Scutt’s innovative set design and Nick Lidster’s sound design were also honored, contributing to the production’s overall success.

Notable Individual Achievements

• Lesley Manville took up both the Best Actress prize and the Best Revival trophy for her work in “Oedipus.”
• Imelda Staunton took up her sixth Olivier Award for her performance as Best Actress in a Musical in “Hello, Dolly!”
• Romola Garai achieved a rare feat with dual nominations in the Best Supporting Actress category, ultimately winning for her performance in ‘The Years.’
• Layton Williams got the award for Best Supporting Actor in a Musical for the unique part he played in “Titanique.”

Diverse Productions Honored

The program also honoured a variety of plays spanning several genres:

• ‘Titanique’ won Best New Entertainment or Comedy Play.
• ‘Brainiac Live’ was recognised as Best Family Show.
• ‘Festen’ was awarded Best New Opera Production, with Allan Clayton recognized for Outstanding Achievement in Opera.
• ‘Eva Yerbabuena’ was honored for Outstanding Achievement in Dance for her performance in ‘Yerbagüena.’

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Hosting and Special Recognitions

The event was hosted by Beverley Knight and Billy Porter, both making their debut as Olivier Awards hosts. Rufus Norris, who is leaving his job as Director of the National Theatre, also got a special award for his work in the theatre business. The 2025 Olivier Awards showed how lively and varied London’s theatre scene is by recognising both groundbreaking new plays and excellent revivals.